Working at a music festival is great fun, you get to meet loads of new people and watch some of your favourite bands at the same time. What could be better?! If you’re thinking about working at a festival this summer, there’s a variety of different organisations you can contact and submit your details to.
Here’s a few of the best:
Hotbox Events runs a team of volunteers called CATS (Campsite Assistant Teams). Volunteering as a CAT means that you’ll work three eight hour shifts spread over the time that the festival is open to the public. In return for your work you’ll receive your ticket for free, camping in a secure crew campsite dedicated to the CATs – close to crew toilets and showers! Because you only work three shifts, you’ll have plenty of time left to enjoy the festival too!
Festivals you can work at: Latitude, Big Chill, Reading, Leeds.
DC Site Services (DCSS) provides a range of staff to a large range of events and festivals throughout the whole summer. Jobs available include anything from supervising fire towers to managing traffic in the car parks. Shift lengths vary but are typically 8-10 hours in length. However DCSS is one of the very few stewarding companies that pays its staff and provides meal vouchers for the staff café.All staff also have access to crew camping, toilets and showers.
Festivals you can work at (including): Glastonbury, Latitude, Golf Live, Big Chill, Reading, Leeds, Download, Taste Food Festivals, T in The Park, NASS, Rockness, Sonisphere, Red Bull Air Race, Proms in the Park…
Worker’s Beer is the company behind many of the bars at the UK’s major summer events and festivals. Interestingly, they are also a non for profit organisation and have helped raise over £5,000,000 for good causes since they started in 1986. As a volunteer you’ll typically work a six hour shift everyday in return for free entry, free beer and meal vouchers.
Festivals you can work at (including): Glastonbury, Hop Farm, Latitude, Reading, Leeds, BBC Proms in The Park, Womad…
Nu Kleen provides cleaning staff and services such as toilet cleaning and litter picking to some of the UK’s largest music festivals. Nu Kleen don’t just provide staff for music festivals but also events such as trade shows, pub, restaurant and club based events, sporting events and seminars. Additional to their events arm Nu Kleen provides commercial office cleaning – this was actually where they started! So if you’re looking at cleaning as a career or would just like to earn some money and get into some festivals for free this summer Nu Kleen is a great place to start!
Oxfam’s stewarding arm provides over 5,000 stewards each year to festivals all over the UK. The festivals donate to Oxfam in return for the stewarding services and through this relationship every year Oxfam stewarding raises around a million pounds to help those living in poverty around the world. Oxfam provides its stewards with hot food, warm showers and crew camping.
Festivals you can work at (including): Rockness, Download, Glastonbury, Latitude, WOMAD, Camp Bestival, Big Chill, Reading, Leeds…
Festival Republic – Environmental Health Monitors (EHOs)
Festival Republic’s EHO volunteers monitor the sanitation on Festival Republic’s festival sites. The EHO posts are particularly suitable for students studying for qualifications in Environmental Studies or Environmental Health. Volunteers are responsible for inspecting campsites, guest and production areas for a build-up of litter, inspecting toilet blocks to make sure that toilet roll, signage and lighting is functional, inspecting hand-washing facilities and water points. Volunteers work three eight hour shifts or four six hour shifts during the festival. More info and details of how to apply can be found on the festival websites (rather than the main Festival Republic website).
Festivals you can volunteer at: Latitude, Reading, Leeds, Big Chill.
Festival Republic – Green Messengers
Festival Republic’s Green Messengers do exactly that – promote the green message to festival goers at Festival Republic’s festivals! The Green Messengers responsibilities include handing out bin bags to festival goers on arrival, informing the campers about the recycling initiatives – in particular asking people to take their gear home with them. The Green Messengers also manage the recycling bins throughout the festival sites – making sure the right stuff goes in the right bin! Volunteers give twenty four hours of their time during the festival for free entry, access to staff camping, showers and toilets! Again more info and details of how to apply to be a Green Messenger can be found on the festival websites (rather than the main Festival Republic website).
Festivals you can volunteer at: Latitude, Reading, Leeds, Big Chill.
Peppermint Bars and Citrus Event Staffing
Peppermint Bars provide both the bars and bar staff for events of all sizes from one day music concerts and boutique festivals to full-on weekend long camping festivals. Bar staff are paid and recruited via Citrus Event Staffing. Citrus Event Staffing not only provides bar staff but entertainers including stilt walkers, fire eaters, jugglers, burlesque dancers, face painters, acrobats, stewards, promotional staff and more!
Festivals you can work at (including): Bestival, Secret Garden Party, Field Day, Polo in the Park, Beach Break Live, Glade Festival, Rockness Festival, Camp Bestival, T4 on the Beach, Henley Regatta…
Midland Fire Protection Services
Midland Fire Protection Services provide fire protection and safety services for all sorts of outdoor events including many of the UK’s largest music festivals. Midland provides a wealth of services including consultancy and training to onsite standby and helicopter cover! Additional to their events arm Midland Fire works with the film and TV industries providing film set, studio and location cover, in shot and action vehicles, training and first aid.
Festivals you can work at (including): Party in the Park, Reading Festival, Leeds Festival, V Festival, WOMAD Festival…
ActionAid works to tackle the effects of poverty across the globe. With more than two thousand civil society partners worldwide ActionAid works with and supports the poorest and most vulnerable people; fighting for and gaining their rights to food, shelter, work, basic healthcare and a voice in the decisions that affect their lives. You can volunteer with ActionAid to take the ‘Bollocks to Poverty’ message to festival and event goers; getting them interested in what ActionAid does.
Festivals you can volunteer at (include): Beach Break Live Festival, Underage Festival…
Event Medical Services (EMS) provides medical staff and support services to a wealth of music festivals and music events in the UK. EMS’ services include first aid, ambulance supply and staffing, trained medics, doctors and nurses, response vehicles and staffing, onsite treatment centres and first aid point supply and staffing. Additional to EMS’ festival arm the company provides medical staff and services to sporting events including track and field and extreme sports, exhibitions, motorsport, film and TV and air shows.
Specialized Security supplies security stewarding staff and crowd management services to a diverse array of UK festivals and events. Specialized Security are well known for providing security staff across festivals from campsites to the main stage pit areas. Through Specialized Security’s training arm (Specialized Training) the company provides both SIA and sector specific training. Additional to their festival arm Specialized Security train and provide staff for exhibitions, conferences, sporting events, the retail sector, community and door supervision.
Festivals you can work at (include): Glastonbury Festival, Reading Festival and The Royal Highland Show…
Cash and Traffic Management (CTM)
Cash and Traffic Management (CTM) provides and manages traffic admission stewards at numerous UK festivals and events. CTM’s traffic services include traffic planning, car parking, plus dealing with road closures and park and ride services. CTM’s admission control services are focused around programme sales, box office management, ticket sales and ticket checking and wristbanding.
Festivals you can work at (include): Glastonbury Festival, Glade Festival, Burghley Horse Trials, Reading Festival, Leeds Festival and Latitude Festival…
Gainsborough Security is an ACS, SIA approved contractor which supplies security and stewarding services to festivals and events all over the UK and Ireland and has been doing so for more than twenty years. Additional to their festival arm Gainsborough provides staff and services to the Earls Court, Olympia and ExCel London venues, offers front of house and reception security, valet parking and traffic management, door supervisors, promotional staff, CCTV monitoring and control room staff.
Festivals you can work at (include): Glastonbury Festival, Latitude Festival, The Big Chill Festival, Leeds Festival, Electric Picnic…
Festival Medical Services (FMS)
Festival Medical Services is a charitable trust that provides trained medical and administrative personnel including doctors, nurses, paramedics and first responders to some of the UK’s largest festivals and events.
Festivals you can volunteer at (include): Glastonbury Festival, Reading Festival, The Royal Bath and West Show, Glastonbury Extravaganza, The Pilton Party…
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would be happy to do any kind of work
Hi
Me and a friend of mine, both licencee’s are looking into setting up a business like ‘peppermint bars’ we can obviously supply everythign needed but wandered how to get into it and who to contact regarding renting plots at festivals, obviously starting at smaller events?
any information you could provide would be greatly appreciated
Marc Suffolk
Hi Marc,
If you’d like to start trading at festivals you need to get in touch with the events direct and usually submit an application. Make sure you do this well in advance as the deadlines are usually a lot earlier than you might think.
If you send an email through to the main festival enquiry address or give them a buzz they can then put you in touch with their ‘trader manager’ or point you in the direction of the application process. You should be able to find contact info on the website for each festival you’re looking at getting involved with.
You can find some example info about trading at Glastonbury Festival here.
As it’s such a large festival they have a well-established process – some of the smaller festivals may well work differently.
Hope that helps and good luck!
while the entry for Worker’s Beer is correct what it does not explain is that a private individual cannot apply direct to The Workers Beer Company { WBC for short }
A person has to contact a official WBC Organiser such as myself – I get asked loads of times how it works so I have made up some information pages starting at http://www.wbc-team.co.uk/wbc-official-teams-1.html
The Main Problem is people tend to look for jobs in the summer when in fact
the best time to Volunteer is in the Winter { deadline is March/April }
Hey,
I am currently studying for a masters degree in International Events Management with the ambiton to work in music events specifically and wanted to know how to contact events organisers and companies to gain work experience and / or employment next summer.
Any information would be graciously recieved.
Patrick.
Hi Patrick,
Most event organisers and promoters offer work experience and voluntary roles, these give you the opportunity to make some contacts and prove that you can work well in an event environment. Both work experience and voluntary positions can and do lead to paid roles.
You can try contacting a promoter such as Festival Republic (www.festivalrepublic.com) direct – the company that runs the Reading Festival, Leeds Festival, Latitude Festival, The Big Chill Festival, Hove Festival and more. You may well be able to gain an on-site assistant position, for example in one of the offices such as Production or Licensing. You can find Festival Republic’s contact details here http://www.festivalrepublic.com/contact/.
Festival Republic also has a careers page which is worth keeping an eye on as jobs are often posted, you can find that here http://www.festivalrepublic.com/careers/.
Another option is to apply to work with one or more of the contractors listed in the original post above – either as a volunteer or paid member of staff depending on the time you have available and the experience you’re looking to gain. As with any industry the more experience you gain the more valuable you will be to an event and festival organiser. Although it sounds as though you’re aim is to work direct for an event organiser / promoter, starting with a contractor is often an easier route in and will allow you to start making the contacts you’ll need.
It’s unlikely the first few positions you gain will be your dream job but don’t underestimate the importance of being in the right place at the right time!
Best of luck!
Is it possible for an 18+ beginner (2-day intensive sound engineering course) to shadow/assist sound engineers at festivals? If so, can you advise which firms to contact? Happy to work on a voluntary or paid basis and to make tea/coffee/collect beer and run other errands.
Thank you
Hi Anne,
Many event companies offer work experience placements although they are very sought after. You’ll need to get in touch with the sound production companies (suppliers) rather than the festivals or promoters. For example Entec Sound & Light (http://www.entec-soundandlight.com). Call them, email them and post them your CV. If you don’t hear anything – do it again! The worst that can happen is they say they can’t offer anything.
Have a search for similar companies – the more you approach the more likely you are to get a placement.
We’ve also passed your enquiry to one of the large UK festival promoters and will let you know if they have any further suggestions.
Good luck!
Hi Anne,
A follow up on the above – we’ve chatted with Festival Republic (the company behind the Reading Festival, Leeds Festival, Latitude Festival…) – they can’t offer sound engineering placements as it conflicts with the intern arrangements they already have in place with Leeds Met.
We’re not sure if you’re interested in any other areas of event and festival production? If you are you might want to check out the new internship and apprenticeship schemes that the Reading and Leeds Festivals have just announced for 2012, you can find out more info via the links below:
2012 Reading Festival Internship and Apprenticeship Schemes
2012 Leeds Festival Internship and Apprenticeship Schemes
Again, best of luck.
Is there any way to actually volunteer without signing up to things and putting huge deposits down? I swear you used to be able to just send your cv off somewhere and they offered you a volunteer position? Does anyone know any company that still volunteers the right way? I would be happy to pick litter for no money for 8 hours a day if I got to see some good bands! the deposit system doesn’t give everyone a fair chance!
Hi Ross,
We’ve worked with festival staff and volunteer recruitment and management since the early nineties and also remember when things were different.
The requirement for deposits became a necessity about ten years ago. Unfortunately, up to 50% of staff and volunteers were either applying but not bothering to turn up, or they were turning up and then running away into the festival or event once they had their crew pass. This leaving the company managing the staff or volunteers and the festival or event understaffed.
It’s a real shame. There are festivals and events out there that don’t ask for a deposit, these are mostly outside of the UK though.
That said, it is a trust thing – at least some of the UK companies only ask for a deposit the first few times you work with them.